Here comes winter, again!

After a rainy warm-up yesterday, the temperature is falling from the forties to the teens tonight. Actually we'll be glad for the ground to firm up a little. We have 22 chickens and their yard is so muddy that the S.O. almost walked out of his shoes yesterday when he was feeding them. When I was teaching, we had at one point probably 15 chickens or so, and I took eggs to school and sold them for $1/dozen - just enough to help buy more feed. Over the years the numbers had thinned and we were down to only 3 chickens. Well, one day Pete (the S.O.) was in Tractor Supply buying feed and they had 20 little chicks that they were having trouble selling. They offered them to him for 25 cents each and he just couldn't resist - and they were, of course, absolutely adorable. I don't know why they were selling them in the fall, but that's probably why no one was buying them. Anyway, they are fully grown but not yet laying eggs. The one on the right may never lay an egg I would guess! But isn't he beautiful?! We're thinking with the cold weather they might not lay until spring. Have no idea what we'll do with all the eggs. Friends and family I suppose.